Display units for storing and merchandising a multiplicity of products having shelves which are vertically stackably arranged in spaced relationship one above the other are well known in the art. Such known display units teach a wide variety of means for attaching the upright support members associated with such units between adjacent vertically arranged shelf members. Such known connection means include a wide variety of wedge-type connections employed between the various shelf members and the upright support members associated therewith as shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,343,685; 3,424,111; 4,574,709; 4,593,826; and 4,621,740. Still other means for vertically stacking one shelf member or display module upon the other is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,618,115. Although the known constructions have attempted to provide a connection between the shelf members and the upright support members positioned therebetween which is durable, less susceptible to wear, and more stable, such prior art constructions still suffer from certain disadvantages and shortcomings. For example, all of the features associated with the known prior art constructions have made such units overly complex, expensive to manufacture, difficult and cumbersome to assemble and transport from one location to another, they require a large number of parts and/or components to assemble which is both inconvenient and time consuming, and such units are still subject to considerable racking when assembled. This is not true of the present display construction as will be hereinafter explained. The present display unit as well as the improved connection means for vertically stacking the associated shelf members in spaced relationship one above the other is clearly different from and distinguishable over the above known prior art constructions.
There also exists a need and demand for an economical display unit which not only permits the spaced apart vertical stacking of one shelf member above the other, but also has modular capability in that it permits adjacent units to be arranged in side-by-side relationship in any desired modular configuration. Typical of the known modular-type display units presently in use in a wide variety of wholesale and retail outlets is the modular unit shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,673,090. Such known modular-type units are limited to certain defined configurations only and do not provide maximum flexibility to a merchant in the areas of conserving and efficiently utilizing available floor space, minimizing assembly time, and maximizing the storage and display of saleable goods on such assemblies. This is not true of the present display unit as will be hereinafter explained wherein such shelf members may be attached in side-by-side relationship to each other so as to achieve a wide variety of both vertical and horizontal modular configurations. None of the known prior art devices provide a unit which can be both vertically and horizontally arranged to achieve any desired arrangement and none discloses a display unit having improved means for attaching the shelf members to one another and to the upright support members associated therewith as is true of the present construction. The present display unit is durable, easily movable from one location to another, employs a minimum of parts to reduce manufacturing costs, greatly simplifies installation, and requires no tools or other means for assembly.